"It's not related." Summer shook her head.Mason stared at her. "It looks like it is. Laugh all you want. There's no need to hold it in.""Anyway, my grandpa can't find out about this injury." Summer swallowed her laughter and put on a serious face.Mason continued to look at her. The smile had faded from his face, but Summer's eyes were still bright with amusement. It greatly soothed the anger, fear, and anxiety that Mason had been feeling since he found her.He finally looked away and put the medical supplies back into the box. "I understand. Come over after school every day. I'll change your dressing."Summer shook her head. "There's no need to trouble yourself so much. It's just some scraped skin. I'll handle it myself. I'm not planning on wearing the bandages to school tomorrow. That's basically announcing to the whole world that I got hurt."Mason frowned. "That won't do.""If I say it's fine, then it's fine," Summer said firmly."If you don't behave, I might have to ask
Mason lowered his gaze. "There was no particular reason. Haven't you heard that my hobby is acquiring companies?"Summer was speechless."Is Mr. Hartford Senior still mad at me?" Mason asked.Summer noded without hesitation. "Yep! We aren't even allowed to mention your name at home. He won't say it, either. He just called you 'that little wolf cub.'"Mason chuckled. "'Wolf cub'? That sounds quite adorable."Summer did not get Mason's sense of humor.But now that he said it, why did it suddenly sound kind of cute?Mason continued, "I did mess up that time. Once the situation with Royal Financial Group settles down, I'll personally apologize to him."Mason looked incredibly serious as he said that.He was so serious that Summer even started feeling a little guilty. For a second there, she was worried he would confess to her.But he didn't."I'm going to bed. You should head back. I'm not scared." Summer got up."Alright. Go ahead." Mason nodded.Without another word, Summer
The driver, Edwin Moore, dropped Summer off on a small road near the school.He handed her a business card and said, "Miss, this is my number. Mr. Hunt said that you can call me at any time if you ever find it inconvenient to call your family's driver. I'll be there right away."Summer hesitated for a moment before she took the card. "Thank you."Nearby, street vendors were already busy selling breakfast, and steam was rising into the crisp morning air.Summer had planned to slip back into school through the side gate. But she glanced at the bustling scene.She had never bought breakfast from a place like this in her past life. Looking at the busy people and the white mist surrounding them, she felt a sense of peace. Even in her past life, that feeling was a rare one.She walked to a stall and bought two breakfast wraps before she walked toward the school.The moment she reached the building, she saw Robin frantically searching for her.He hurried over. "Ms. Hartford, where did
Lindsey looked at Summer with admiration. "Summer, sometimes, I really wonder if you're a machine. By the way, you weren't here last night. The principal said he found a teaching assistant to cover for him when he's not around. I heard this assistant is amazing."Harold had been swamped with problems lately. The whole Chandler situation was enough to keep him in hot water with Mason, making it impossible for him to teach their class as usual. Solving that difficult problem had taken some time.By now, most of the students had arrived."He's here! He's here!"There was a commotion among the students in the front row.Summer instinctively looked up. She saw Harold walk in with a tall and slender man behind him.When she saw that nerdy man, her expression darkened.She wasn't the only one with a dramatic change in expression, for Rose's expression changed, too.Harold announced, "Class, let me introduce someone to you. This is your senior, Anthony Lawson. I probably don't need to
The senior students had become increasingly tense due to the approaching SAT. Even during break time, there were barely any students in the hallways.Summer walked to the pantry and slowly poured herself a cup of hot water.The resentment radiating from Rose had practically filled the classroom. It was impossible for Summer to ignore.It seemed like Anthony hadn't told Rose about coming to class. Did that mean that those two had already fallen out?How fragile! She hadn't even made a move yet, and those so-called "true loves" from her past life were already in shambles."Summer," Anthony said from behind her at that moment."Hello, Anthony," Summer replied flatly as she capped her water bottle.Anthony smiled and said, "I didn't expect to see you again so soon. When Mr. Green contacted me, I had no idea I'd be teaching your class.""Really? Rose didn't tell you?" Summer feigned innocence.Anthony shook his head. "I haven't been in contact with Rose much. Ever since she stopped
"Why didn't you tell me you were coming to the school as a teaching assistant?" Rose asked.Anthony shot back, "Did you tell me you came back to school? Move away! Whatever you want to say, we can talk about it after school. I won't be able to explain things if anyone sees us.""What's there to explain? Just tell them I'm your girlfriend," she said loudly.He reached out and covered her mouth. "Are you insane? Rose, know your place."Rose said through gritted teeth, "You're the one who doesn't know his place. Don't think I don't know that you don't want to be with me anymore. You just want a legitimate excuse to go after Summer, right? You think I'm dirty, and she's clean."Anthony lowered his voice. "Rose, stop imagining things! I'm just doing what you told me to do! Didn't you call me and tell me she was very hostile toward you? There's no way I can get closer to her through you anymore. This is the only way!"She sneered. "Anthony, do you think I'm as stupid as Summer? I'm tel
"It's nothing." Rose lowered her head, but her voice didn't seem convincing at all."There's no one else here. You can take your time and tell me," Janice reassured her.Rose had met Janice a few times before.Janice had always seemed very polite, but it was a detached kind of politeness that kept people at an arm's length. She was actually showing concern for Rose now?Rose knew exactly what was going on—Janice was targeting Summer.And coincidentally, she was just looking for a way to attack Summer, too.Even though Power Construction wasn't as powerful as Hartford Group, they didn't rely on the latter to survive. They were strong in their own right.Wasn't that a perfect weapon?Rose quickly fabricated a story, saying that a boy Summer liked had fallen for her instead. Then, she said that Summer had taken revenge out of jealousy."That's outrageous!" Janice fumed. "She's so young, and she's already seducing men everywhere!" Rose glanced at her. "It'd be one thing if she w
Rose had just been wallowing in her shame and anger, but she had gotten herself a new ally. Her mood finally lifted a little.When she returned to the classroom, she glanced at Summer. Just thinking about what Summer would face soon was enough to extinguish most of the anger that was burning inside her.Summer noticed Rose's return as well. But Rose seemed different from what she expected.By now, Rose should have gone to confront Anthony, and the two of them were almost certain to have a falling out. Yet, Rose seemed quite smug at that moment.…The weather had been getting hotter and hotter lately. The entire day passed with Anthony going through two papers and everyone sweating over new ones.In the blink of an eye, the evening self-study ended.After packing up her things, Summer was the last to leave the classroom as usual. The moment she stepped out, Anthony appeared in front of her."Summer, are you hungry? I heard the late-night canteen here is really good. Since you ac
"What does it have to do with you?" Mason sneered."You…" Snow was shocked by his indifference.She'd just caught them doing something inappropriate. Shouldn't he be panicking? Shouldn't he be begging for her to keep their secret?Then, Mason forcefully pushed the door, shoving Snow outside and slamming it shut.Snow stomped her foot on the ground furiously, but there was nothing she could do. She thought to herself that she would go look for Summer tomorrow. If Mason didn't care, surely Summer would have some shame.Then, with a huff, she yanked up the pajama top that had slid down her shoulders and stormed back to her room.…Early the next morning, Summer woke up, washed up, and went to knock on Mason's door. After that, the two of them went to have breakfast in the dining room.Snow, as a volunteer, was in the dining room as well. When she saw the two of them walk in and how attentive Mason was to Summer, she felt a surge of jealousy in her heart."You still haven't gotten
Summer sat on the bed while Mason knelt at the bedside. He carefully applied ointment to her bites with visible concern.Summer reassured him, "It's just mosquito bites. They'll be gone after a good night's sleep.""Plenty of people have gotten sick from mosquito bites," Mason said.Summer reached out, grabbed his wrist, and attempted to pull him up. But she lost her balance and tumbled backward onto the bed, almost dragging Mason down with her.Luckily, he braced himself with both hands on either side of her, narrowly keeping them from falling. Now, he was hovering above her, and their eyes met.The scent of herbal balm filled the room, somehow making for a strange atmosphere."You got bitten on the cheek, too," Mason said as he looked at her face."Don't put that green stuff on my face. It's weird," Summer said."No…" Mason protested.Summer blinked. "It'll be fine. If you're really worried, just kiss it. Saliva has antibacterial properties, too."Mason said nothing as he l
Otherwise, Mason truly didn't know what he would do.Would he try to snatch Summer away? What if she hated him for it? What if she was never happy again because of it?That wasn't what he wanted. All he wanted was for Summer to live a happy, joyful life. Whether or not he was a part of that life didn't seem to matter much."There are some water lilies over there. They might still be in bloom, so let's go check them out." Summer's cheeks were flushed, and she was still slightly out of breath."Alright." Mason nodded.The two of them walked over side by side and even held hands for a while. By the time they reached the water lily pond, Summer let go.There were two couples by the pond. One pair was leaning close to the other, while the other was taking photos.Mason looked at them, finding the scene both dazzling and enviable. Once again, he regretted accepting to pretend to be her brother."Look! There are so many water lilies!" Summer didn't notice Mason's gloom as she grabbed
Once Snow was gone, the other women started to whisper among themselves."I bet she's going to look for Betsy. She probably wants to switch rooms to be next to that handsome guy.""For sure. She probably went to take a shower and doll herself up, too.""She's always throwing herself at guys but still acts so high and mighty. I really don't get what's going on in her head."Summer and Mason had already walked quite far ahead.Summer couldn't hold back her laughter anymore. "What do we do, Mason? It looks like that pretty girl has a crush on you."Mason glanced at her.Before she could react, he suddenly pulled her into his arms, lowered his head, and kissed her hard. "You're very happy, aren't you?"There were quite a few guests walking around the farm at that moment.Summer was startled and tried to break free, but Mason only held her even tighter."Mr. Hunt, it was my fault!" Summer surrendered immediately.Mason said nothing."If that woman comes looking for you, I'll hel
Mason was visibly pleased when he heard Summer say that there was still plenty of time. He nodded without hesitation.After dinner, Summer and Mason took a leisurely stroll outside.The countryside at night was far quieter than the city. The farmland was in full bloom. With everything growing strong and lush, they walked along a small path, and when they looked up, the sky was filled with stars."There are so many stars!" Summer exclaimed.Mason looked up as well. He wasn't really interested in them. Rather than stars, he was far more interested in looking at Summer."You liked stars a lot when you were a kid," Mason said.Summer looked at him before she shook her head in disbelief. "We met just once when I was young. How much did I tell you?""You told me quite a lot," Mason said.Summer shook her head again. "It looks like I've always been weak to good-looking people. I told you everything, I guess."That made Mason's grin even wider. "So, is that a compliment?""Isn't that
"Hello," Mason greeted politely.Randall instantly lit up with the same warm smile as before. "No need to be so polite. The dishes are almost ready. Would you two like to eat inside the house or out in the open area out front?""What do you think?" Summer asked.Mason never expected that Summer treating him like her brother could have this sort of effect. "Whatever you like.""Let's eat inside first. We can walk around after dinner," Summer said.The owner chuckled and immediately had someone arrange it.It was the summer break, so there were quite a few guests at the farm, but not many were staying overnight.Summer had arrived late. Most people had already eaten and gone out for a stroll.Summer asked Mason softly, "What do you think? Do you like it? We can sleep here and go catch some shrimp tomorrow. There are many fruits and vegetables to pick, too. "When I came with my parents, they almost picked a whole carload and insisted on bringing them home. In the end, they gave
"How would you know where I want to go?" Mason asked with a smile."I just do!" Summer answered confidently.After passing what used to be the flea market, the road opened up into the countryside. Mason could see stretches of fields rolling by.On the way there, a call came in from the company.Summer glanced at Mason before she answered the call.Very quickly, she heard Lionel's voice. "Summer, have you eaten yet?""I still haven't. What's up?" Summer replied. Her tone was totally different from the one she used with Mason."There's a problem with the structure of the Escape From the Asylum project. I kept calling Hunt, but he hasn't been answering. Could you try contacting him later?" Lionel said.Hunt naturally referred to Saul.Ever since the restaurant incident, Saul had rarely shown up at the company. Summer had been so busy lately that the two of them barely crossed paths. Even so, they had kept in touch on the phone."I got it. If it's getting too late and you can't s
Even putting everything else aside, the incident that had taken Xena's life, according to Luke, had been a result of an internal family conflict. Xena had simply been caught in the crossfire.Cynthia had lost Xena—her sister—and then spent years in a vegetative state. If Mason ignored her, that would have reflected really poorly on his character. It would have meant that he had no sense of responsibility.Mason gave her a gentle smile. "That was a close call.""Let's go out for dinner tonight," Summer said suddenly.Mason was taken aback for a moment. "Go out? Aren't you afraid someone might see us?"Of course Mason wanted to, but Summer had always seemed reluctant to be exposed publicly like that.Summer said as she pulled Mason up. "No one will. Take off your suit. I'll bring you to a nighttime flea market. No wealthy folk will be there."Mason looked a little lost. He had never been to such places.While he went to change, Summer pulled out two baseball caps from a drawer an
In the blink of an eye, a busy month came to an end.That afternoon, Summer received a call from her apartment management. Someone from the floor below had complained about a leak from her unit, and they asked her to check it out.Summer immediately drove over.The moment she stepped out of the elevator, she didn't see the neighbor or the property staff. Instead, she was greeted with the sight of a massive bouquet, as well as Mason waiting for her right next to the door."You're back?" Summer's eyes lit up as her face bloomed with joy. She skipped over to Mason excitedly."I thought you said you wouldn't be back until next week?" Summer asked."I missed you so much that I came home early." Mason shifted the flowers aside and opened his arms.Summer lunged into his embrace with a radiant smile, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Welcome back, Mr. Hunt!"Mason held the bouquet with one hand as he gently stroked her head with the other. He lowered his head and kissed Summer on t